Best NFL Survivor Pool Strategy & Picks For Week 4: 49ers, Chiefs & More
The horror that is competing in an NFL survivor pool continues for some of you while for many (and I mean many) your time is over and all I can do is applaud you for having the resilience to read an article touting the best survivor pool strategy.
Making survivor pool picks has strangely been one of the toughest this season and I am out of all of my survivor pools, including Circa Survivor, except for one. That’s right – one bullet left. My Circa Survivor dreams were blown up by the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens.
The $25K survivor pool I won last year? Dunzo. I’ve got one pick left in one last pool and I am going to fight tooth and nail to get it to the end and cash a big, fat check. To do that, I truly need to provide you with the absolute best survivor pool strategy.
Best NFL Survivor Pool Strategy for 2024 NFL Week 4
Focus, people. Focus. If you’re looking for the best survivor pool strategy, my advice is to focus. That’s what’s needed here to make our survivor pool picks.
We’ll go through the Vegas odds and lines and figure out which side of the fence they’re on, but we’re still going to have to dive in deeper because they’ve been taking a bath with all of these underdogs hitting, and the money lines we’ve looked at over these first three weeks have done us no good. We will continue to focus on home teams.
We will continue to look for some of the biggest mismatches both offensively and defensively. We will take money lines and point-spreads into consideration, but we are not going to live and die by them, by any means. We need to take a few chances; a few shots downfield, if you will. So now that you have the best survivor pool strategy for Week 4, let’s see who we like for our NFL Week 4 survivor pool picks.
NFL Survivor Pool Picks For Week 4
San Francisco 49ers (-10.5 Favorite; -650 Money Line)
After last week’s moderately epic collapse, I feel like you have to push the chips all-on on the 49ers this week against the Patriots. New England may have shocked the world with their Week 1 upset of the Bengals, as we look back, we’ve learned the Bengals defense is trash.
The Patriots then went on to lose to the Seahawks in overtime and then got their asses handed to them by the Jets. This was the New England we were expecting. Kyle Shanahan is not going to let his team fall apart this time and while it seems the Patriots can get some opponents to play down to their level, that won’t happen this time.
Kansas City Chiefs (-7.5 Favorite; -400 Money Line)
While I don’t typically like taking a road team, there are a lot of things working against the Chargers right now that cannot be ignored. It starts with the quarterback situation as Justin Herbert’s ankle-sprain is limiting his mobility and while some still believe he could make this start again, there’s a strong chance he doesn’t finish, and the Chargers put their eggs into Taylor Heinicke’s basket.
Of course, you might be concerned that the Chargers just grind it out on the ground and slow this one down, but how are they doing that with both Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt out for this game. You’re not only losing two offensive linemen, but you’re also losing two of the best in the league. The Chiefs defensive line helps garner the win here.
New York Jets (-7.5 Favorite; -375 Money Line)
Everyone’s got that Rocky Mountain high after the Broncos upset the Bucs on the road last week, but coming in to face the Jets is a different story. Aaron Rodgers looked like he found his groove last week and while he and Garrett Wilson still have things to work out, the offense looked potent.
Add to that Denver losing linebacker Alex Singleton to a torn ACL, the Jets ground game with Breece Hall is going to be extremely difficult to stop. Yes, Denver has a great secondary, but the Jets should have no trouble moving the ball and scoring points while Bo Nix is forced to contend with a defense that is currently firing on all cylinders.
Houston Texans (-6.5 Favorite; -300 Money Line)
This one is likely to make people nervous, but if you are still alive in your pool, you may have already used some or all of the teams above. The Jaguars are going to be playing desperate football as they try to right the ship, but Trevor Lawrence and this offense looks a little lost and that Houston pass-rush is going to cause fits for Jacksonville.
On the offensive front, C.J. Stroud and the Texans need a big rebound. They’ll still be without Joe Mixon which definitely hurts the ground attack, but even if this one turns into a shootout, the Texans have the advantage with the offensive firepower. It’s not my favorite pick of the group, but if you don’t have the above three, it’s probably your next best option.
Player News
Dolphins signed No. 13 overall pick DT Kenneth Grant to a four-year contract.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Grant will sign his contract today. The former Michigan defensive tackle is expected to fill a major void left by Christian Wilkins, who left for the Raiders in the 2024 offseason. Grant totaled 32 tackles, three sacks, and seven TFLs in his final season at Michigan and excelled at stopping the run while also generating 27 pressures in his final season, per PFF.
Beat reporter John Hendrix reports that free agent WR Donovan Peoples-Jones is among the 16 players that the Saints will host for their rookie minicamp.
Peoples-Jones last played regular season snaps with the Lions back in 2023, when he caught 13-of-24 targets for 155 yards. He is highly unlikely to return to fantasy relevance at this point but could perhaps sign on as a special teams contributor.
Titans signed fourth-round pick WR Elic Ayomanor to a four-year contract.
Ayomanor will now begin learning behind Calvin Ridley. Although Ayomanor is unlikely to find a meaningful role in year one, dynasty managers should note his status as training camp gets underway this summer. The former Stanford receiver flashed big-play ability in his two college seasons.
Buccaneers signed seventh-round pick WR Tez Johnson to a four-year contract.
Johnson will serve as a rotational deep-threat option for Baker Mayfield. His thin frame (5'10/154) simply does not lend itself to the repeated hits one incurs in a full-time role. Johnson did earn 100-plus targets in his two seasons at Oregon, though. His big-play style make him a better fit in best ball for now, pending any major on-field breakthroughs.
Giants waived DT Casey Rogers.
Rogers was a 2024 undrafted free agent and logged 33 defensive snaps for the Giants in his rookie season. He is credited with zero tackles and/or sacks. He may find his way onto another roster as a practice squad option.
Vikings signed third-round pick WR Tai Felton to a four-year contract.
Felton is quietly in play to challenge Vikings No. 3 WR Jalen Nailor in training camp. Nailor (5'11/190) caught 28-of-42 targets for 414 yards and six touchdowns in his first season as a starter last year, with the latter category buoying his fantasy productivity. Felton (6'1/183), meanwhile, caught 96-of-143 targets for 1,119 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 2.32 yards per route run in his final college season. Fantasy managers should monitor Felton’s training camp reports this summer, as he could have a matchup-based WR5 role if everything falls into place.